


An Analysis of a Sacrifice and the Cowardice Preceding

by Silverheart



Series: A New Equation [2]
Category: Tron: Legacy (2010)
Genre: Daddy Issues, F/M, Grief/Mourning, Post-Movie(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-04
Updated: 2013-02-04
Packaged: 2017-11-28 04:10:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/670119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silverheart/pseuds/Silverheart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dad was dead. Again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	An Analysis of a Sacrifice and the Cowardice Preceding

Sam had spent hours staring at the ceiling, unable to sleep. He'd need it, he knew, but it wasn't coming. He laid on the couch for a couple hours, then gave up and went to make breakfast.

 

Dad was dead. Again.

 

To make it all worse, everything on the Grid...it left Sam feeling like he didn't even know the man, like he never had. Kevin Flynn had just sat there, doing _nothing_ , meditating or whatever, while his amazing creation went to hell. Dad had always known what to do, had always been moving forward, figuring something out. People had told him things were impossible before, but he'd gone and found a way to beat the odds, every single time.

 

But with CLU, he'd just given up when the odds got worse, up until Sam left him with no other choice.

 

Sam didn't know what he would have done in his place, but he'd have done something.

 

And damn it, Dad was still dead.

 

"What are you cooking?"

 

Sam looked up to see Quorra watching him fry eggs. She had a sleepy Marv cuddled to her chest. Little traitor had slept with her last night.

 

"Eggs," he said.

 

"From chickens."

 

She knew the world from books, didn't she? "Right in one." He flipped an egg to a plate and gave her a good look. She'd slept in her clothes. She'd need to get more clothes, an ID, maybe a job.

 

And her own place. He knew she said she didn't need one, and he'd be lying if he said he didn't entertain the thought (often and vividly) of her sticking around, but he wasn't going to take advantage of her.

 

And Dad was dead.

 

Sam handed her the plate and a fork and starting frying another egg. "You're probably starving. I definitely am."

 

Quorra ate quickly, pacing around the room and touching things. He kept her in sight as he made himself another three eggs (over easy, the way Dad used to for him), nearly burning himself in the process.

 

She picked up a piece of paper, one of those random flyers that got left on his door, and dropped it quickly. "Ow!"

 

Sam frowned. "What is it?" he asked, walking over.

 

"Just a....paper cut."

 

He took her hand to see the tiny, thin red line on her index finger. "What, haven't been cut before?" He winced as it came out of his mouth. She'd lost her arm for him less than a day ago.

 

"I've never bled before," she said, staring at her finger, "Only Users bleed."

 

He suppressed his impulse to lick the wound, which would lead to...no, he was _better_ than that. "Well, guess that means you're a User now. Welcome to the club. Our special skills include bleeding and generally having no fucking clue about what's going on."

 

She laughed, then became serious. "I thought Flynn knew what was going on, but I guess...I guess not. If he knew, things would have been different."

 

Her, too..."Yeah. He was just a User, in the end. Come on, lets get that cleaned." He led her to the sink. She didn't choose to let go of his hand, and he didn't object.

 

"He gave himself for you."

 

Sam let go of her and made turning on the faucet a longer process than it needed to be. He stared at the water. "He did."

 

Dad was dead, for him.

 

Her voice took on a drifty quality; she wasn't exactly talking to him anymore. "He put it off for a long time. He could have done it almost any time, but he did it then for you. He removed himself from the equation, just like he taught me."

 

Sam stood up straighter, eyes locked on the running water. That was the issue, wasn't it? Dad had spent all his time not doing anything to save the Grid, to save all the people there, to save his miracle ISOs, to save Quorra, even when the solution had been right there. It would have killed him, but it had been right there. He'd only done it because Sam had been in danger.

 

"I thought I knew him," Sam muttered, "and he's dead, now, so I never will. If he had any explanation, I'll never hear it."

 

"It's okay, Sam,” Quorra said, her hand curling tightly around his, “It's okay."

 

He shut his eyes and breathed, just for a moment. He couldn't just stand still. Drove him insane. "Here." He took her hand and placed it under the water. "That sort of thing gets infected easily."

**Author's Note:**

> I think Kevin Flynn is a jerk and an idiot in Legacy. There's indications that Sam, happy as he is to see him, feels the same way. The man he found just didn't live up to his childhood expectation.


End file.
